Dessert and Dinner

[zoje_george]

This is not, actually, the first meal I've made in the new house. On Monday, I made Nigella's super easy lemon rosemary roasted chicken (the leftovers of which will become chicken fried rice for tomorrow night) with rice pilaf

Comments

[sensational]

Nom nom. Sexy entry, seriously.

[zoje_george]

It's because the lime husks look like breasts, isn't it? Hee!

[sorenr]

Nope, I find it sexy too, so it must be something beside that. Maybe it's the glorious food?

[erinmorgenstern]

I'm with sensational. Nom nom nom!

(And I like the plates!)

(And your tattoo!)

[zoje_george]

Those are La Cyn's plates, aren't they nice?

[cynstress]

*gloat*

Yea, I ate all that!! Neener!

[zoje_george]

Not all of it, not YET. You still have blueberries to eat, missy.

[georginasevart]

Cooking is just a whole "thing", isn't it? I'm writing down that porkchop cooking method. I really like the sound of it. You had such nice thick chops, and I'll bet they stayed very moist, didn't they?

[zoje_george]

Yep. They were perfect.

These aren't my recipes, they're Uncle Tony's.

[georginasevart]

Well *that's* on my wish list now. Thank you! I'm always on the look out for good cookbook recommendations. Oddly enough, they are not all created equal. Imagine that.

Plus, your hair looks fantastic. Oh to be able to do something that casual with mine and have it look that great.

[zoje_george]

Olive oil: good for you inside and out! And yeah, the hair falling down was really just a happy accident.

[metamorphosa]

Ooooh, sounds tasty! I'm a total Creme Fraiche addict!

I agree, it's fantastic having a Real Proper butchers close to hand. There was one in my Old Village which would only stock from local farmers, and I have to say (pre-vegetarian days) I thought the meat was so much more flavoursome. I still buy from them because my children eat meat.

*Sticks hand up in air* I need The Talk. I always had wooden chopping boards because I preferred them but can't afford one right now (the ex kept them). Why/how did I inadvertently make the right choice back then?

Re: the limes, I grate them. I have one of those graters with different cutting blades on them, one of which does little curly zesty things. Much easier and quicker than peeling.

Also, if you don't mind me asking, what is your tattoo of?

[zoje_george]

The Talk

Wooden cutting boards, when well kept, are far superior in all ways to any other sort of cutting board.

Plastic: absorbs bacteria and odors.
Glass: terrible to cut on, bad for the knives, dangerous (imo).
Marble: okay, but again, terrible for the knives.
Formica/other composites: bacteria sponges!

Quite a few years ago, the University of Wisconsin at Madison (I think it was Madison) did a study on plastic versus wooden cutting boards to determine which was best for defeating the dreaded cross-contamination and surviving knife wear. Obviously, wood came out best for knife wear. The surprising thing was how well wood did for the bacteria problem. It'd long be believed that bacteria would thrive on something porous like wood. However, and I am likely recalling the exact reasons incorrectly, there's something about the cellular structure of wood itself, and we're talking boards made of close-grained hardwood, not some cheap pine thing, that actively repels bacteria and other contaminants. As you can see from the linked article

[georginasevart]

Yeah see, I got caught on that a few years ago and switched to glass because of the purported bacteria-collecting-in-wood argument that I read. Your care method sounds viable, though, and I may have to consider it. Glass it good, I must admit. I've been happy with it, but it's noisy as noisy ohmygoshfreakingnoisy. No fast chopping on that sucker.

[pescana]

I hate using glass cutting boards. I had one that's Van Gogh's starry night picture, but every time I used it not only did it make a terrible racket, what I was cutting went flying all over the place. Wood is much better, when properly cared for.